[Pics] Progress of Bangalore Metro’s KR Market Station
Here are some fairly new images from inside Bangalore Metro’s KR Market Station which lies on the southern leg of the Green Line! The station is being built as part of contract UG-1 by the Coastal-TTS JV which was awarded the contract in March 2011. Tunneling works from this station were wrapped up last year after TBM Krishna made a breakthrough at Chickpet station on August 31 after a brutal journey of 22 months. Following that, work to finish & cover up the station’s box & northern shaft began.
Location of KR Market station – view Bangalore metro map & information
During & after the inauguration of the Purple Line’s underground section in April, the BMRCL and its CPRO made & continue to make claims that commercial operations on the entire Green Line will start in November 2016.
@Ramanan79S targeting Nov 2016
— Namma Metro CPRO (@uavasanthrao) April 29, 2016
@VimalKumarPatil scheduling Nov-Dec
— BMRCL (@cpronammametro) May 10, 2016
For a minute, let’s all forget that tunneling works are still in progress for both tunnels between Majestic – Chickpet by TBMs Kaveri & Krishna (see May 1 progress) and track-work on the completed portions hasn’t even begun yet. Keeping those aside and just looking at the images below, just how do they plan to deliver?
Stairs leading to the concourse level – Photo Copyright: Akshay Palanethra
Concourse level – Photo Copyright: Akshay Palanethra
Looking down at the platform level – Photo Copyright: Akshay Palanethra
Platform level – Photo Copyright: Akshay Palanethra
Photo Copyright: Akshay Palanethra
Photo Copyright: Akshay Palanethra
View above the station’s box – Photo Copyright: BMRCL
Before I leave, here’s a tweet made back in December 2015 when the CPRO confidently claimed this section will be ready by June 2016. So much for that. Come November and watch the cycle repeat once again.
@ananda_nadig EW to be ready by Jan and NS by June
— Namma Metro CPRO (@uavasanthrao) December 29, 2015
For a more realistic opening schedule, check out my May 2016 tunneling update and its insightful comments left by readers.
For more updates, check out the Bangalore section of The Metro Rail Guy!
– TMRG
i would say this will happen only between June-Dec 2017.
That sounds about right.
I absolutely agree. It could be a typo from CPRO – Nov – Dec 2017 could be the actual dates when one can travel NS line. Looking at the above pics it only cements my views.
Hi TMRG,
I thought tunneling was in the critical path for opening this line. Perhaps station construction is what is the critical path! What is causing the delay in station constructions? Any idea how does chickpet station progress look like?
Hi, in Bangalore the stations are definitely on the critical path and use up a lot of time. In Delhi, by the time a breakthrough is made, the station’s box is completed and only the shaft at the end of the station needs to be covered up after the TBM’s trailing gear, locomotive track, ventilation pipe etc. is removed from the rear end. And sometimes, the breakthrough is made inside a partially covered shaft – see example and the TBM’s parts are pulled out from one of the openings. Interior works (finishing, AC/Ventilation ducts) almost always begin while tunneling is in progress, but in Bangalore, the contractors are way behind & take care their sweet time, especially Coastal.
Chickpet station’s completion is a little further behind KR Market. The May update has an image from outside.
I think this is because Chikpet & KR Market stations are in very congested areas & it isn’t possible to lift TBM after breakthrough from a partially covered shaft due to limitations for locating mobile cranes.
However, I agree that the contractor (Coastal) has been very slow with station constructions, in general.
‘Quick Snapshot’ graphs need corrections:
Operational 31.5 km.
Under Construction 10.8 km.
Approved 72.1 km (Ph-2).
Hi, I plan to update that half yearly. Next update will be in June.
There are definitely things that keep cropping up in the course of construction which one cannot comprehend. As CPRO, the representative is only advising what he is given to understand a fair completion date. I am sure the teams are working hard to get things completed. As in purple line, this would be a great success too upon completion. As they say it is so easy to sit and review on forums s but one has fair to ground realities.
Hi, I’m being fair to ‘ground realities’ and there’s nothing out of the ordinary cropping up at the stations. Only the tunneling works have been/are unpredictable. The CPRO is very well aware of the ‘ground realities’ as well, but is forced to toe the line and stick to the BMRCL’s official response.
This line would have a greater patronage compared to the Purple line. Looking forward to seeing it open, but there’s just a long way to go before that happens.
Hi TMRG, I agree with lina phase 1 will complete in Q3-2017.
May-16 reports say 98% complete in all station like national collage , Lalbagh west gate, Jayangar south end station etc and these reports are getting published from past 1 year , I wonder why BRMCL do not complete the work 100% ? they can save lot of time during comminissioning of these stations . why there are not doing the trail run from national collage to Puttenahalli they can save 3 month of trail run , DMRC had same concern they had lifted the rolling stock with crane and did the trail run which at the end saved lot of time. BMRCL should take technical expertise advice from DMRC .
May 2016 report
“Reach- 4 (Krishna Rajendra Market – Rashtriya Vidyalaya Road)-South Corridor (4.10Kms)
Stations :- 99% of work is completed in K R Road, Lalbagh and South End Circle. 99% of work is completed in
Jayanagar, 98% of work is completed in R V Road Station. Overall progress completed is 99% at all the stations “
Stations cannot be 100% completed as certain things have to be done just before commencement of services, like servicing /testing of signals. Also, to avoid pilferage, some expensive final fittings have to done only just before commencement /use.
I think lifting coaches & testing the line was dropped as they have no depot or maintenance facility on reach-4 for coaches used for testing.
Mithun – Sham has answered your question very well! Pilferage is one of the main reasons why the stations are not entirely complete despite being in the ‘ready’ state for months. As per the CPRO’s plan, trials on Reach 4/4A will commence once one of the tunnels is complete, which would be the one bored by Margarita and Kaveri. Could be another 6-8 months before that happens.
TMRG – some technical suggestion – when i click on a link in the blog, it opens the link in the same page, it would be nice if it opens another TAB with this link. can you fix this, as we lose the context when the new link opens in the same page & you lose the traffic.
Thanks – I’ll look into this.